


Changed

by Kajacobs04



Category: Original Work
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Hacking, Jewlery, Magic, Romance, Serial Killer, boys, fangirling, genius, jailbreak
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-18
Updated: 2016-12-18
Packaged: 2018-09-09 15:28:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8897059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kajacobs04/pseuds/Kajacobs04
Summary: Leyna, Amy, Nicole, and Cal are you average-ish friend group. They have a genius, a compassionate, a sarcastic, and a fashionista. But, it didn't use to be like this. They used to have a friend named Tyler, who went missing a year ago. But, now she's back; and she's changed. It isn't only that that's changed, a huge criminal broke out of the highest quality prison a year ago. Now Tyler's changed and someone dangerous is on the loose and the girls are stuck in the middle.





	1. Chapter 1

Leyna’s POV

 

I never thought this would happen, none of us did. But, the world is unpredictable. The smallest, or sometimes not so small, choices could have a huge effect on your life. Also, who'd have thought about some of the simplest, or what I call simple, things, like spontaneity, could change your life forever?

 

Cause it can, and it did for me and my friends. Just like it changed Tyler, who after our act of spontaneity let the world get to her and changed her. Nicole could say that she went crazy, just like Calypso would say that it was her fault. But none of that is true. So I will tell you how it actually happened. I will tell you how 4 friends managed to stop the cruelest, most dangerous person in the country, possibly the world.

 

 

1 year ago

 

 

Everything was green and brown. Me and my friends, Amy and Nicole, were walking through the forest right on the edge of my property. The property I live on isn't huge, but it most most certainly wasn't small. It had a 2 story brown house on it, with a decent size garden and a huge forest that was at least 4 times the size of our plot of land. The forest was gorgeous, the trees at least 15 feet high. The birds sang a beautiful melody, and the plants swayed in the breeze.   
The only downside was the fact that there are bugs everywhere, and Nicole had no problem pointing that out. “Gosh! Honestly, why would Tyler tell us to meet her here? Bugs are literally nesting in my hair. I like could literally scream right now.” She ranted, her hands constantly fixing her blonde hair and her blue eyes constantly scanning her phone.  
Amy and I sighed, though for very different reasons, Amy's being annoyed.“Nicole, really?” Nicole glanced at Amy, then smirked when she saw the gingers annoyed face. As soon as I saw Nicole's eyes get that mischievous glint in them I immediately spoke up, hoping to prevent the conflict that usually arouse with every time this happens “Nicole, don't-” but unfortunately she didn't heed my warning, she just completely ignored it. “Sorry, not sorry.” Her voice was louder than it should have been as it bounced off   
Thankfully though, Amy decided to ignore the comment, instead she decided to add one of her own. “Well, these woods are only twice the size of town. How hard will it be to find her?” Her green eyes widening a but with the statement, her sarcasm evident.  
I sighed, I knew neither of them were outdoor people but one would think that they would be at least a tad bit respectful to Mother Nature. “Enough with the snarky comments guys, it's not that bad. Now we really should hurry up if we want to meet up with her.” Amy looks at me, exasperated. “Lee, we’re early.” She looks at her watch “thirty minutes early.” Nicole looks at Amy in shock before grabbing her wrist to look at the watch herself. “Woah, we aren't ever early.” All I can do is shake my head and laugh at their astonishment. “Stop it Lee, she might not even be here yet.” I stopped and turned to look at them. “Ok, so if she isn't here than we just wait for her. It's not that bad guys.” When I turned around to continue walking I almost missed Amy's comment. “According to you.”   
I opened my mouth to respond to her reply when I hear Tyler yelling. “You didn't do it? I thought I told you to have it done for me!” I furrowed my eyebrows at what she said, immediately starting to wonder who she was talking to and why she was talking to them like that. Of course I was the only one who immediately questioned why Tyler was yelling, for as soon as she finished Amy thinks nothing of it and says “Well, we found her.”   
We walk toward the direction of Tyler's voice and when she comes into sight, we see her yelling at a girl with long dark brown hair brown hair and a pink T-shirt waving a blank paper in her face. I pick out a large bush and pull Amy and Nicole behind it to watch, I can tell that they are beginning to wonder what's going on with Tyler. Though I can't see Tyler's face I can tell that her blue eyes are probably filled with anger by how she's standing. Her black hair laying long across her back.   
The girl stumbles back, looking terrified, tears streaming down her face. “ I-I don't have enough time to get both yours and mine done. I don't understands why you can't do any of it.” I blink a few times. “What is she doing?” I said feeling confused, which is saying something considering I'm the smartest person in my school, as well as the most clever. I have a few ideas about what might be going on, I just didn't think Tyler was that type of person.  
Tyler sighs. “Just hurry up and get out of here. I have more important people to see. But, don't you think this is over Freak!” Just as the girl turned around I stepped out of the bushes. I didn't know how long this has been going on, but it sure as hell wasn't continuing anymore. “Hey Tyler, you know how we’re always late?” I said, my tone starting out sweet before it turned poisonous. “We can early.” Tyler froze, before both the girl and Tyler turned around, they each held a completely different facial expression, Tyler looked scared and angry. Amy and Nicole chose that time to stand up as well. “Pinky, get over here!” The girl scurried over to stand behind Amy.   
Nicole stared at Tyler, looking betrayed. “Why- Tyler… What are you doing?” Tyler looked at Nicole looking as though she could care less that her friend was hurt. “Depends on how much you heard.” I looked at Tyler, and I studied her, and completely zoned out on what Amy was asking the girl. I knew that Tyler was changing months ago, I just never realized just how much. I wondered if my friends were changing for the good or bad every night, and Nicole and Amy were. But Tyler didn't. She started going behind our backs and doing stuff like this. And then I knew what we had to do. “We heard enough.”

 

After that, everything went downhill. We took our new found friend Calypso, Cal for short, to my place and got to know her. Though we didn't talk about it, we were all thinking about it. We left Tyler in the woods and did our best to push the thoughts of our previous friend out of our minds. It wasn't ever really clear if we made the right decision leaving her there, but I never really regretted it.   
Tyler disappeared the next day, we never really knew if she ran away or if she was kidnapped, but I'm pretty sure I'm one of the only people that put that much though into it. But when she came back, that was when the real drama started.


	2. Chapter 2

Leyna’s POV

 

It's been a year since Tyler went missing, and I was the only one of my friends that realize it. I can tell that Amy knows today's something special, but she just doesn't know what. The police still haven't stopped looking for her, which surprises me, but the missing posters are still there and there's constantly a cop car driving around.  
I've been working on my computer skills, constantly on there when I'm at home. One would think my parents would stop me; but after my mom died, my dad was out of the house constantly. I'm pretty sure it was because I look very similar to my mom, light brown hair with hazel eyes and a model figure at medium height. I was constantly browsing every photo taken, it usually took me hours, to see if I could find Tyler in one. But it was hopeless, because Tyler was a mastermind, almost as smart and clever as me, and when she didn't want to be found- she wasn't found.  
I know my friends have given up when instead of knowing it was the anniversary of the day she went missing, we were all hanging out at the park.

“Oh my gosh! Cal, I can't believe you!” Amy's laughter echoing across the park. “It's true! It is, I'm telling you!” Cal said, trying to convince us that she had done something bad. Her hands were flailing as though that would help. Me and Nicole just sat there and chuckled, watching the 2 fight. Amy rolled her eyes, not convinced that Cal had actually done it. “Guys, you don't actually think Cal is capable of doing anything relatively mean?” She said, trying to convince us to join her side of the argument.   
Nicole looked between both of them, trying to decide who's side was the most reasonable. “I dunno. Siblings are the worst.” She raised her eyebrows as though she couldn't help but agree with Cal. “But- how? I don't think you could blame your little brother for something like that. You would totally tell the truth.” Amy's voice was desperate, trying to make people see her point of view.  
I looked between my 3 friends wondering how this argument even started. “I'm being serious! I broke my mothers favorite vase and I told them it was Jason. They actually believed me!” Cal said, seeming surprised that they actually believed her. Jason is Cals younger brother, and he's even more innocent than Cal. “You did not!” My head snapped to Amy as she said this. I knew Cal was about to break, though I wouldn't ever admit it, I was on Amy's side. I was pretty decent at reading people and I could tell that Cal was lying. “Well…” Cal started. “I though about it.” And there she goes. “Ha! I knew it. You can't do anything that could even have the change to hurt anyone's feelings!” Amy smiled victoriously, happy that she was right.   
“Come on, isn't that a good thing?” Cal asked, trying to protect her reputation. “It is, In a way.” I said, trying not to involve myself in this fight and not to make it worse at the same time. “What?” Cal looked confused.  
I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could explain Nicole changed the topic. “Well, it's hard for us to relate to a perfect little angel.” Amy had no problem continuing the conversation, especially since she know how to make it into a fight. “ Especially when said Angel is captain of the cheerleading squad.” I sighed here we go again. Cal immediately responded, ending the previous conversation and starting a new one. “Well, I still thing it's a good thing. Besides its not my fault I was the next in line when the first team captain broke her foot!” Me and Amy looked at each other and rolled our eyes.  
“I still can't believe I wasn't accepted into the cheerleading squad.” Nicole pouted, still unable to get over what happened 5 months ago. I sighed, here we go again. “Nicole, last time you tried to do a handstand you fell on your face and got a concussion.” Amy gave Nicole a knowing look. “That means I'm a team player, so I should have gotten accepted!” Nicole scowled and crossed her arms, unhappy with the results.  
The conversation was cut off when Amy's phone rang. Amy's hand shot down and looked at the screen to see who was calling. “I need to take this.” She mumbled before she stood up and briskly walked away. I watched her tall figure in confusion. Amy doesn't usually care about us overhearing her conversation so it was rather pedicular that she decided to walk just out of hearing range.  
“I wonder what that was about.” Voicing my thoughts. “Well, they call her dramatic Amy for a reason.” Obviously Nicole didn't sense anything wrong with Amy's behavior. Cal raised an eyebrow at Nicole. “Umm, Nicole? Nobody calls her that.” I watched Amy's body language and tried to figure out who she was talking to, but it seemed she didn't want me to know. “Wait! Do you guys think she's talking to a guy?” I'm pretty sure what Nicole wants to happen is interfering with what's really happening. “Um Nicole what signs-” Cal cut me off “OMG! She totally is.”   
I groaned. Most people think that just because I'm a book worm I love everything to do with boys, but I don't. Yea sure I love romance, but I'm not as obsessed as Nicole and Cal. I also know from first hand experience that once they start, it's hard to get them to stop. “Do you think it's that guys from yesterday? A, A… Alec? Alex?” Nicole was in all out fangirl mode. “Ash.” I put in, there's no point in ignoring them. It's better to get it over with than stopping it. “Yes, Ash! The guy she had to leave early for. Do you think it's him?” Cal thought about it for a minuting before saying “Oh my gosh! It must be.” They both squealed.   
I could only shake my head at the girls antics. “Guys! Hold on to your dignity.” I scolded, before I noticed Amy walking back over and she looked a bit panicked. “She's coming back over here, and if it's a boy why does she looked panicked?” I looked at the other two on my last statement. They both studied her and looked at each other and shrugged. “Guys, this is bad. Amy doesn't panick very often.” I felt myself growing more and more nervous. “What could be that bad?” Nicole sounded like she was trying to sound brave when she was actually terrified. “I don't know…” Cal trailer off.” The three of us stood there and watched Amy hang up the phone and run over to us. “Guys!” Amy looked terrified. “They found her.” I froze, not wanting to believe it. I looked at Amy hoping for her to deny what I was thinking. “Found who?” Nicole wasn't catching on, still in her fangirling haze. “Tyler! They found Tyler!” 

 

After that we all just freaked out. Me and Tyler were never as close as her and Nicole, so u wasn't really in a hurry to get over to her place. Cal didn't want to go over there at all, while Amy and Nicole wanted to go right away. I barely managed to veto that idea. I tried to give it a week, but I only managed to postpone it till the next day. That day was a big day. That was the day we realized just how much Tyler had changed.


	3. Chapter 3

Amy's POV

 

She's back, one of my closest friends was back. I know Leyna and Cal don't want to see her quite yet, but they won't let me and Nicole go alone. I wasn't as close to Tyler as Nicole was, but I was definitely closer than Leyna was. Me and Nicole wanted to go see her yesterday, but Leyna vetoed the idea. So now here we all are running down the street Tyler supposedly lives on at 10;00 in the morning.  
“Can't- Breath!” Nicole panted trying to keep up with me, Leyna and Cal. “Just… Wait…”Nicole stopped, hands on her knees panting. None of us noticed though, we just continued running till we reached Tyler's house. “Woah, that was a long run.” I said, breathing heavily. “I told you we didn't have to run.” Leyna grumbled. I wonder what's up with her, it's almost like she doesn't want to see Tyler. I mean, I know that she's made some mistakes but that doesn't mean you have to hold it against her.  
“So should we like, knock?” I asked, looking at Leyna for an answer, like I always do. “Well, we certainly can. But I think Nicole won't we here for a bit.” Leyna answers my question, pointing out a small problem at the same time. “Y-you guys go in.” Cal stutters. I looked at her confused, Cal was usually so confident. I brushed it off though, figuring it was probably just the excitement. “You sure?” Leyna asked, I guess she didn't let it go as easily as I did. “Yea, positive.” Cal smiled. Leyna furrowed her eyebrows at her smile, which I didn't understand, but I let it go. “Looks like we get to do the fun part!” I shot Leyna a grin.   
As we knocked on the door I could just barely pick out parts of Cal and Nicole's conversation. “This… Torture” Nicole, I decided. “Yea… Definitely” That was Cal. “Why… At… Tyler's?” Nicole was asking Cal a question. “Waiting…. You.” I could barely heard Cals answer. By the time the two of them had run back over Tyler still hasn't opened the door.   
Nicole decided that she wasn't waiting, and pounded on the door again. About 2 minutes later and 1 more pounding on the door, the door opened. Tyler stood in the doorway with her black hair tied in a knot on the top of her head wearing Pajamas, looking rather annoyed. That is, until she saw it was us. “Nicole? Amy? Leyna?” She asked, not really wanting to believe it was really us. “It's us!” Nicole looked the happiest I'd seen her in the year. Tyler smiled, “Wow, I am so happy to see you guys again!” Leyna gave a smile, though it looked forced. “Yea, it sure has been a while!” she chuckled a bit after she said that.  
I looked at Leyna, silently asking her if i should ask, or if she should. She gave me a tiny head nod indicating that i should. “So Tyler, if you don't mind me asking, what were you doing?” Tyler looked at me confused,at which Leyna huffed and clarified my words for her. ‘What were you doing in the year you were missing Tyler?” Her voice sounded really harsh “Well, don't sugarcoat it, Lee.” I heard Nicole mumble. I wasn't quite sure whether to chuckle or scowl at what Leyna said, she didn't usually play the bad cop.   
Tyler looked at me and said “Crazy sh- crap.” I could tell she was gonna say something else, but I guess she decided against it. I nodded, still curious. I look to my right, silently conversing with Nicole. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Tyler glare at Leyna when she thought we weren't looking. By the increase of Tyler's glare in Leyna's direction I could tell she returned it. By the intensity of Tyler's glare, I would say her and Leyna hated each other. But I haven't seen Tyler in a while, so I can't be sure. All I know is that they most certainly aren't on good terms.  
“Common Tyler!” Nicole started, interrupting the glare fest “We're your friends! We wanna know what happened to you-” The silence in the room during Nicole's spheal was disturbed when Leona mumbled “At least some of us do.” Everyone ignored her though, and continued listening to Nicole, and watched her pace. “Were you kidnapped? Did you get lost? Where were you?”   
Once she finished, she stopped pacing and looked directly at Tyler, her eyes burning into her soul. Tyler looked around awkwardly, out of the corner of my eye I saw Leyna narrow her eyes at Tyler's actions and started speaking so quietly under her breath that no one could hear her.  
“What, no. I'd really rather not talk about this. Can't we just hang out, have fun?” Tyler's voice sounded strained, I still don't understand why she was so awkward. I frowned, I get that she doesn't want to talk about this but Nicole asked a question. “What! No… we asked a question. You can't just-” Nicole elbowed me in the ribs, cutting me off. I raised my eyebrows at her, wondering why She wasn't upset that Tyler didn't answer her question. Nicole have Tyler a smile, and asked “Well, what do you wanna do?”   
“Well, I'd like to-” Tyler cut herself off with a scream, staring directly past Nicole. I flipped around to see a scared looking Cal, I'd almost forgotten about her she was so quiet. “What-?” I was cut off by Tyler screeching”What is she doing here?” I frowned, not seeing any problem with Cal being here. “Why wouldn't she be here?” Tyler, who was previously glaring at Cal, turned her glare to me. “If your to hang out with me today, she's got to go!” Cal looked down obviously contemplating her options. “No! She doesn't have to leave! Tyler get that-” Cal cut Nicole's rant off “Its fine, Nicole. You hang out with your friend, I'll go.” Cal turned and walked out. “Cal!” I yelled, as though it would make her come back.   
Everyone stared at the closing door, silent. Nicole and I still trying to digest what happened, and Tyler seething. Leyna was staring at the door, anger written clear across her face, but still mumbling silently. “What was that for?” I yelled, as soon as I snapped out of my daze. This brought everyone back to earth, except Leyna that is. Tyler, who had just calmed back down, went red with anger. “It's her fault! It's all her FAULT!” Tyler hissed. When Tyler yelled it was scary, but when she talked quietly it was even scarier. “What? How is it her fault? What did she do?” Nicole asked, conflicted as of which side to join. “You shouldn't have done that Tyler! She's probably crying her eyes out!” I exclaimed, angry and worried. All 3 of us started talking all at once, the jumble of voices made it almost impossible to hear. The uproar was impossibly loud, and slowly getting louder and louder.  
A loud bang sounded, and all eyes looked to the source of the sound. Leyna, who had snapped out of her separate world, stood there with her fist on the table. Leyna could be impossibly scary when she wanted to be, actually she could make you feel anything with just one look if she wanted to, whether it's guilt, fear, happiness… At this moment, it was fear. The silence was deafening. It felt like we stood there forever, but in reality it was only a minute or two. “Will all of you just shut up?” Leyna growled, I think she was annoyed that we disturbed her. She turned to Tyler before asking, “what's Cals fault?” Leyna made tone warned Tyler not to over exaggerate.   
Tyler choose to ignore the warning Leyna sent her continued insulting Cal as she was. “None of this” she exclaimed, gesturing to all of them “ would have happened if it wasn't for her!” Me and Nicole opened our mouths to defend Cal, but closed them when we saw Leyna raise her hand in our direction. “Now, Tyler. Unless my photographic memory is failing me, I'm pretty sure you were the one bullying her.” Leyna spoke calmly, so calmly that if someone didn't see her face they might think she wasn't angry at all.  
“Well, why should I tell you why it's her fault. I haven't seen you in months!” Tyler says nastily. Me and Nicole exchange confused looks, we were almost completely lost. Leyna didn't look surprised at what Tyler said though. “Are you feeling alright Tyler?” Nicole asked, after she looked to Leyna to see if now was a good time to chat, but she only got Leyna mumbling under her breath again. “Maybe you should get some sleep, it's been a long couple of days.” She was being extremely cautious, as though she was approaching a wild animal prepared to attack.   
“Wait! I want answers!” I snapped, of Tyler was gonna act like this she could at least give us some answers. “I'm fine! And you don't deserve answers! You betrayed me! You left me!” Tyler screamed at us. I saw Nicole look to Leyna to see if she was gonna do anything, but by the look in her eyes I could tell she wasn't. “You've been gone for 3 months! I think we deserve some answers!” I kept at it, not want to give Tyler the satisfaction of winning. “Well, wouldn't you like to know.” Tyler sneered. I felt a hand grab my arm, and a half a second later I heard a voice follow it. “Bye Tyler. Talk to us again once you have your anger in check.” Leyna's voice was like steel, and I could hear the glare at her voice and once I turned I could see it. I felt a tug, her way of telling us to go with her. Then we walked out the door.  
And we didn't look back.


	4. Chapter 4

Cal’s POV

 

I found myself running down the road, tears burning at the back of my eyes. My fault, my fault. Those words echoed in my head. I didn't even know where I was running until I got there.   
The park.  
It was my favorite place when I was younger. Usually when I tell people, they ask why someone who's bullied like me go to a park full of people. But it's not that type of park. It's like a park in the forest, surrounded by nature. This place always calms me down. As I step into the clearing, I look around in awe. I haven't been here in years, and it's even more beautiful than I remember. The sun peaking through the 30 foot trees, casting multiple golden rays onto the grass. The grass, which looks like it hasn't been mowed in at least a year, is up to my knees and flowers were spread throughout the field.  
I walked slowly through the clearing, heading towards the bench that overlooks the huge lake 20 feet below. As soon as I sit down, my mind wanders back to Tyler's house. My thoughts took off, and I wondered what would happen now that Tyler was back. I know that Nicole and Amy are very close to her, but I don't know about Leyna. She's always been a bit of a mystery to me. But one thing I can tell, is that she doesn't like Tyler that much.   
“Hello!” A voice jerked my from my thoughts “what's your name?” I looked back to see a short blond standing behind me. She had curly short hair, and bright blue eyes, and I'd bet she was about 2 years younger than me. I look up at her and try to hide the sadness from my eyes, good but I don't think I accomplished it. “Cal. Short for Calypso.” The girl gave a small smile, and sat down next to me on the bench. “Like the Greek Myth?” So she was smart for her age. “How do you know about that? Most people don't.” She smirks, before responding “I'm just full of mysteries, aren't I?” Kinda like Leyna, I decided in my head, smart and mysterious. “My parent named me and brother after Greek Myths. My brothers name is Jason. I guess you could say they were slightly obsessed with the legends.” I chuckled.  
“Awesome names.” She complemented, trying to get me to smile. “My names Isabelle, but you can call me Izzy.” She stuck her head up proudly, obviously very happy with her name. “Well, that's a very pretty name.” My lip lifted a bit, giving a small smile. She smiled triumphantly when she saw my smile. “Thanks! So, why so sad?” She asks, trying to find out what was wrong. “I do look really sad, don't I?” I sniffled, laughing a bit. She gives me that look that says, you look like your cat just died and now you're trying to change the subject so stop and I laughed a bit knowing that's exactly how I looked.   
“Well, what do you do when you're sad?” I asked her, wondering if this girl was more than just brains in a cute vessel. “Well, I'll tell you. After you answer my questions.” I looked at her and furrowed my eyebrows, wondering what she's planning. I decided though that I would answer her questions, just because its kind and I'm curious. “Well then, ask away.” She smiled showing off her white teeth. “Well, question 1 how old is your brother? Question 2 is he cute? Question 4, no 3 do you have a picture?” I chuckled, before giving her my answer. “Well, he's 12. And I'm his sister so I wouldn't know. And no I don't have a picture sorry.”   
She looks disappointed for a moment, before releasing a smile. “Well, I have an answer for you know.” I nod, eagerly awaiting her response, I’m  
sure my brown eyes were full of curiosity. “Friends, go find your friends Calypso.” I look at her, nodding slowly. “I suppose you're right. How'd you get so wise, at what 12?” She chuckled, “11, I'm 11. And I really don't know, maybe it's just runs in the family.” She winked, before turning around. “I think your cures on its way. And it's Green by the way, just thought you'd want to know.”   
I stood there, confused and trying to ponder what had just happened as I watched the small blonde walk away. Green, what does green have to do with anything? Maybe it's a last name. Since she obviously knew something about me, and I knew some Greens I figured that just be it. Green, It is so familiar, Green. Suddenly everything clicked, Green, Alya Green. Alya was the person I went to when the bullying got to be too much. She's about 4 years older than I am and was always at the park. She always talked about her younger sister, I can't believe I only just realized that Izzy was her, they are incredibly similar after all. I laughed out loud, when Alya left she said that she would always be with me and to always keep fighting. I guess the Greens are still looking out for me.   
“Hey! Cal!!!” I was broken out of my trance by Nicole's shouting. I turned to look at what Izzy calls my cure, and I gave a smile. I was surprised at how easily the ability to give a real smile came back to me after crying. “Hey! Are you sad Cal? Cal!?” Nicole's shouting was unrelenting. “Of course she's sad. You don't have to be a genius to know that!” I could practically hear Leyna's eye roll from all the way over here.   
I laughed, and it felt really good. Most people would frown at how little time I spent being sad and how I was acting like I just smiled for the first time in years. But I was ok with that, and I know that as long as I have friends I'll be ok. Even when Leyna indicated that something big was happening with her statement of, we have a lot to talk about, I held on to that happiness, unwilling to let go of what I know will become a very rare emotion from now on.


	5. Chapter 5

Leyna's POV

 

Ever since Tyler's house I've been thinking about what happened there, and how Tyler was acting. It's just so strange, I mean, I always knew that she'd change cause we all do. But I never knew just how bad it would be. Amy and Nicole knew I didn't want to see Tyler, but they didn't know why. They didn't know that I knew she was going to be changed and though I might not have known how bad it was gonna be, I knew it wouldn't be good. So now, I find myself at Cal's house trying to explain to the incompetent in the room what happened to Tyler.

We were sitting at Cal's house, Nicole was on 1 of the 2 rocking chairs, Amy on the other and Cal sat on her bean bag. I was sprawled out on the couch, deep in thought, but also paying attention to their conversation. Amy and Nicole both had looks of nervousness on their faces, while Cal had a look of terror, obviously expecting Tyler to come after her, which wasn't that far off. They sat in silence for a few minutes, before Amy broke the silence. “So, what do you think made Tyler go bonkers? What even happened?” Everyone looked at me, but I ignored their stares and pretended to fall even deeper into what my friends all call my brain castle, but what I call my mind space.  
They continued to stare at me for a while, before they came to the conclusion that I wasn't listening. “Well, what if the months spent in that forest made her go nature crazy! My uncle Joe went camping in the jungle for a week once and he hasn't been the same since… in fact, he's been acting like a monkey.” Nicole looked confused for a minute before shrugging and looking to the others for their opinion on her theory. Amy shook her head at Tyler, and Cal cringed. Even I, the most unfeeling in the group, rolled my eyes at Nicole. “Really? Nicole, Tyler never cared much for nature, and someone who's gone nature crazy is a person who's either gone crazy trying to protect nature or been in nature too long so they act like they are part of it.” Amy spoke up, trying to defuse Nicole's idea.   
I rolled my eyes again and decided that I should probably share what my prediction is. “Actually, I'm pretty sure she was brainwashed, or something along those lines.” Everyone's head snapped to me, surprised that I was listening. There was another moment of silence, which was very strange cause usually we have no silence in our group, and in just today we've already had approximately 10 to 15 minutes of it. “Woah! That sounds like something from a sci-fi movie! Or a TV show-” Nicole's babbling was stopped when Amy put her hand over her mouth. “Someone watches too much TV.” Amy grumbled.   
“Guys, Tyler seemed fine before I came in… do you think that maybe it really was my fault?” When Cal spoke for the first time, everyone turned to stare at her shaking their heads furiously. “No! Cal of course not!” Nicole said as strongly as she could, but it wasn't very believable. “How could it be your fault! You-you didn't make her go crazy… it wasn't your fault!” Even Amy, who was the second best at lying and manipulation, didn't believe strong enough in her words to make them true. Cal looked down, saddened by their belief.   
“Actually, it was not mainly Cals fault. It was all of our fault, and someone else's, I just don't know who yet.” I said the last part so quietly no one heard me. They all looked at me they're facial expressions screaming how is that supposed to make me feel better? But I continued on before they could comment. “When we left her in that woods, I'm fairly certain that she left the woods after we left. So no Nicole, she didn't do nature crazy. Also, I could tell that before Cal came in she was about to break.” I was cut off by Nicole. “Break? What's that supposed to mean?” I sighed, annoyed. “I was getting to that, Nicole.” I gave her a hard stare, before pushing forward. “She had already gone insane as you guys have put it, but it's not really insanity, not to mention she didn't speak of her time away at all, which means that she is either not able to talk about it, or in a deal that prevents her from speaking.” I finished my sharing a section of the conclusion that I came to on the day we saw Tyler again.  
“Ok, that makes sense. But how did you get that all down? And when?” Amy raised her eyebrows at me, trying to figure me out even though she has known me for years. Before I could respond to Amy, Nicole butted in. “That's just like my uncle! He wouldn't talk about his time away at all, it was rather suspicious. Some people thought he started a new race.” Nicole nodded, looking rather like an overexcited 4 year old. Amy sighed “This is nothing like your ‘monkey’ uncle!” Amy's voice was harsh. Cal frowned, siding with Amy, but also feeling that she was a bit harsh. “Tyler's gone crazy Nicole, this isn't something to joke about.” Nicole frowned at Cal, but before she could comment I spoke up. “How many times do I have to say it before your tiny brains get it? She didn't go crazy!”   
They all looked down, but for different reasons. Cal looked ashamed at my comment, as well as Nicole. Amy just looked annoyed at how I called her brain small, for she believed that she was almost as smart as I was. “Well, how do we help her than?” Cals voice sounded small. “I don't know if there's anything that we can do, sorry Cal but I think we're gonna have to sit this one out.” Amy looked apologetic, having forgotten my comment already. “Come on! It's only fun if we do something though!” Nicole complained, forgetting that she hated doing anything adventurous. “Amy's right, we can't do anything.” I said, not looking as dejected as the rest of them are. Cal looked at me, begging me with her eyes to reconsider. “We have to do something!”   
“Don't you get it? We can't!” I spoke a bit to strongly, for Cal's voice was smaller when she asked the most reasonable question of the day. “Why?” I looked at her, my expression showing an emotion for the first time in that conversation. The grimness on my face covered my voice as well when I answered her question. “Because Cal, she's different. Tyler's changed.” 

 

After that the silence fell over us again, but this time it stayed that way until nobody could handle it anymore. When we couldn't, we left. I knew that Cal was going to bring it back up sometime, but I knew it wouldn't be for a while. So I fell deeper into the world of the internet, and truer to find out what happened around the time Tyler went missing. I also hacked Tyler's phone, and tried to see who she was been talking to, and I managed to trace many numbers but they were only stolen phones. So I continued my search, trying to finish my theory. Trying to find proof that Tyler had fallen into the trap that so many had before.


	6. Chapter 6

Tyler's POV

 

Ever since I saw my friends last I knew that all of them would move on. They don't understand why I picked on Cal, but I don't really care. My goal when picking on her, was to make it so then they didn't ever get to meet her, and I know it sounds selfish, but I just wanted my friends to myself. Plus, when I looked at Cal, everything in me was screaming I hate her, and as I got to know her I hated her even more. So I picked on her, kept her away from my friends and I got some bonuses out of it. When my friends came to the woods that day so many years ago, I didn't expect them to be early, and I definitely didn't expect them to leave me in there.  
But they did, and now I'm thankful for that. They gave me a door to a whole new take on my life, I could get everything I wanted, and it's all thanks to them. 

 

I pace around my cream colored room, passing the blue bed in the corner and the dresser on the opposite side of the room numerous times. My mother and father, unknown to everyone else, moved ages ago, but they never sold the house. I held the phone to my ear, hearing the ringing sound I knew so well recently. I waited for the person on the other side to pick up, and I paced even more, I'm certain there's going to be a hole in the white carpet by the time I'm done.  
“Ahh, Tyler. What a pleasant surprise.” A snake like voice came out of the phone, it was a man by the sound of it, and while his words were smooth, the meaning behind them was dangerous. “Good news, I hope?” The threat behind them, was so potent many would be surprised that I wasn't cowering in fear. “No. I'm sorry Sir, I couldn't get them to stay.” My voice was loud and clear, I was confident no one would hear me; Just like I am confident he wouldn't hurt me, he promised that we would work together, be partners in crime. “No, no… this is good- very good. That girl- Cal was it?- will be very, very useful to us.” The man spoke slowly and powerfully, demanding submission.   
My mind raced, how could Cal- this pitiful useless girl- help us? “Sir, if you don't mind me asking, how would Cal be any use to us? Unless I'm missing something, she's just a weak, pitiful girl.” My voice snarled when I spoke of Cal, though I was careful at the beginning of my statement to keep my voice respectful. “Oh? Well, that she is. But she's kind, much like you used to be, and the others enjoy her company. She will come back, for she feels sorry, thanks to your acting my dear.” The pet name he used almost made me smile, until I realized that he mentioned my past, which I only shared with him. I chose to ignore it though, focusing on the plan. “And when she does Sir?” “Than we catch her, and use her as bait to get your former friends.” He laughed, pulling off the nasty voice so well. “What will us catching my former friends do for us sir?” I asked, wondering how bringing them back will help.   
“One of them, has almost gotten me figured out. I need to dispose of them.” The voice said, surprising me. I was ready to leave my friends behind, but getting rid of them once and for all? That sounds even better, the ultimate revenge. “Sir, how can we make sure they all come? What if only a few of them come?” “No, they will all come. I'm sure of it. They must come. They are no longer just girls, they have become our undoing. We cannot let this happen, we have worked so hard to be stopped by some teenagers! Though some of them are weak, they all have dangerous qualities. They must not be messed with, they shall be destroyed.” The voice became even more snake like and venomous as he discussed the girls.   
“Alright Sir, but should we actually kill them? As you said, they are just teenagers, can't we just lock them away?” I asked, while I loved the idea of my first kill, the idea of killing them when they might have decent information seemed irrational. “My dear sweet Tyler, you speak logic, and believe me, logic does not apply at all to this life.” The voice, which seemed to sound younger, laughed insane laugh. “Ok sir.” I said obediently, ready to continue the mission. “Let the girl- Calypso- come to you. Than bring her to me, and then we will work together my dear, to bend the world to our whim.” 

 

So I waited and followed his command and I waited. He called me from time to time, mainly to check if I had completed the task, but he was more patient that I am so he didn't get angry when I didn't have her yet. A few times, he called just to check up on me, making sure I was ready for anything. So I waited, waiting for our plan to be activated.


	7. Chapter 7

Leyna's POV

 

I had found myself buried deep in the internet and books after that night at Cal's house, constantly searching for some proof that Tyler has done this to herself and not had someone do it to her for days. I kept trying too, isolating myself from the rest of the world for weeks. Winter started actually. I invited Cal, Amy and Nicole over, because I felt that I'm closer than ever to finding out if my assumption is true.

 

Everyone sat in my dark blue room talking. Cal sat in my dark grey with white accents bed, Amy sat on my white bean bag in the corner and Nicole sat on my grey rug, standing in contrast to the white carpet. I sat at my white desk, that was in the corner facing the rest of the room, typing furiously at the high tech computer. We sat in silence for awhile, the only sound being the clicking sound of the keys of my computer, before Cal broke the silence unable to hold it back anymore. “Guys! I really think we should help her!” I ignored her, continuing my typing. Amy didn't follow suite. “Cal, I really think we should leave this alone!” Her voice was stressed out.  
“Actually, it might do us some good to help her out. It could make it better.” Nicole mused, sounding up to the age level. Amy and Cal looked at her, eyebrows up to their hair line. I almost looked up at her, it was strange when Nicole made comments like this. She only ever did it when she wasn't feeling great, whether physically or emotionally. “You OK Nicole?” Cal asked, concerned for her friends well being. Cal hasn't ever been here while Nicole goes through these phases. “Yea, I'm ok.” Nicole's voice sounded off, her eyes far off. Amy kept looking at her, trying to figure out why Nicole was off.   
“I have an idea!” Cal’s voice sounded so innocent, trying not to raise any alarm bells in Amy or my mind. “How about me and Le-” I glared at her, silently saying don't even think about it. “Me and Nicole go over to Tyler's-” “No, no, no and No!” Nicole said, cutting Cal off once again. Amy shook her head, giving Cal a don't you even try it look. “Big fat no Cal. Firstly, Tyler's pissed at you. Second, she's incredibly dangerous sane, imagine her when she's lost her sanity and consciousness!” I felt Amy's nervous gaze on my back when she implied insane, I just fell deeper into the internet and my mind space. “Finally, Tyler will talk to us when she's ready!”   
Amy looked as though she believed so firmly that Tyler would talk to them when she's ready, made me want to laugh. I quickly glanced at everyone else in the room to see their opinion on the matter, they all looked like they truly believed the third option. I mentally laughed at them, knowing that Tyler wasn't going to contact them. “But it might help! I would do anything to make sure that Tyler is ok. Even going over there could help.” Cal looked very stressed out, and her voice clearly portrayed that emotion. “Just, give it a few more days Cal. She just got back and she's probably very stressed.” Nicole sounded done, just ready for this conversation to be over. “Fine.” Cal was very reluctant to leave it alone, but she did.   
“Well, now that that's done, I wanna hear about that boy Amy was talking to.” Nicole said, cheekily. Amy looked up sharply, a blush taking place on her face. “W-what boy?” She rubbed the back of her neck as she said that. Nicole sighed, shaking her head. “Amy, we all know when you rub the back of your neck your lying.” Cal laughed “Nicole's right, plus you're totally blushing!” Amy's mouth opened and closed multiple times, trying to find a comeback. “At a loss for words Amy?” Nicole taunted, purposefully playing with Fire.  
Amy scowled at Nicole. “Shut up!” She pouted. Nicole didn't stop though. “At this very moment in time, Amaryllis Jean Hunter is hereby diagnosed with the ‘cats got my tongue’ disease. She will die in 3-” Amy hit Nicole's arm, cutting her off “Knock it off! Fine, I was talking to a boy on the phone a couple of days ago.” Amy rolled her eyes, not seeing why this is such a big deal, which I didn't understand much either. “And?” Cal asked, wanting Amy to continue. “And what?” Amy sounded very confused as to what they wanted to know, though I had caught on now. Nicole sighed dramatically. “Is he cute? What's his name? Are you in Love? Come on Amy, we need details!”   
Amy looked at Nicole like she had gone crazy, but not wanting to start a fight she answered her. “No! We are not in love. He's just a boy. I guess he's kinda cute. Whatever. His name is Liam. What else do you want to know?” Amy looked at them, sounding bored. They pondered this for a few moments, before Cal perked up. “I have a question! Why were you talking to him?” She smiled deviously. Amy scoffed “What do you mean ‘why were you talking to him’? He's just a boy, there are multiple reasons why I could have been talking to him.” She rolled her eyes, but since she was getting flustered I knew that it was partially a lie.   
Then others didn't either. “Sorry Amy, but you just don't talk to boys that often.” Cal pointed out, eyebrows raised. Nicole laughed and gave Cal a high five. “She got you there Amy.” Amy rolled her eyes and gave an exasperated sigh. “Guys! Liam's just a childhood friend. We hadn't talked in awhile and he wanted to catch up! Again, just a childhood friend.” Nicole wiggled her eyebrows. “Childhood Crush?” Cal laughed, but then trained her eyes on me. Amy groaned. “No! A friend, that's it.” Nicole laughed. Cal started walking toward me. “Hey Lee, you've been quiet.”   
“What?” I said, still only half paying attention. I didn't need to look up to know that they were all staring at me. “Wasn't paying attention.” I spoke offhandedly. “Well why not? You missed Amy talking about a boy! An actual boy!” Nicole sounded like I offended her religion. Amy huffed, obviously annoyed with this topic. “I wasn't talking about a boy, I was answering your questions about him. There's a dif-” Cal cleared her throat, making a rather large head gesture toward where I was typing. Amy and Nicole looked down sheepishly, mumbling a chorus of sorrys. “So what are you doing Lee?” Cal reworded her question. I continued typing for another minute while they all stared at me, unrelenting. “Your not gonna let it go are you?” I said, not very surprised. I didn't have look up to know that they were shaking their head.  
“Fine then. I'm working on figuring out how to find Tyler.” I continued on with my work, hoping foolishly that they would leave it at that. After all, if Amy found out the consequences of what I'm doing she wouldn't be very happy. But, as I said, it was foolish to hope for such a thing. “So? What did you find?” Amy asked. I sighed, taking my hands off the keyboard for the first time in around an hour to roll them out. I pondered a bit over what to say, and how to say it in a way they wouldn't complicate their understanding if it. “What I've found is very strange, and most of it unuseful and irrelevant. I ended up having to hack into a government database-” Amy made a strangled sound. “You do know that that is illegal right? As in not aloud to do it illegal!” I glared at her, unamused at the implied meaning of the last half. “Oh course I know what that! Who do you think-.” I cut myself off, rethinking my decision. “Whatever. The point being, I found out about a huge jailbreak.” I spoke quickly, my tone speeding up and slowing down as I continued searching online.   
Nicole grunted then said “There's a lot of those.” She pressed for more information. “Well yea. But it would be on the news, so why did you have to hack into a government database to do so? Seriously, it would have been much safer just to look at what's already out there.” Amy complained, still annoyed with my decision to hack. I rolled my eyes at her foolishness. “You think that wasn't the first place I checked?” Amy looked down sheepishly. I sighed and continued. “They kept this out of the news. I'm not completely sure why, but I have assumptions. Number 1 being this man was very heavily guarded, as in at least 50 security protocols. So I'm sure it would end up as a huge blow to their pride, and they know it to. Also, I found out that he escaped only a few days before we left Tyler in the woods.” My voice was full of dread. They all seemed to catch onto what I was saying and their faces morphed into horror.   
Amy swallowed thickly. “Ok, so Tyler might be in with this guy. Does he have a name?” I looked back at my computer, scanning through his file. “It's very vague, seems like they couldn't pry much information from him. Even had to resort to small amounts of torture.” They all took a small intake of breath at that, I pressed on. “They did manage to get a last name though, Burns. They tried for a first name but they didn't manage it.” I finished. Amy looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to continue. When I didn't she asks “Well, did you find anything under that name?” I looked pointedly at her. “Of course I did! Just nothing on him, it was all family members. Honestly, when will you people learn to stop underestimating me.” I grumbled.   
“There's things more important than a name Amy, for instance what is Burns in prison for? How did he break out?” Cal asked, fed up with Amy's and I’s bickering. I gave a grateful hand gesture towards Cal, thankful for a reasonable question. “Thanks you Cal! Now, from what I can find, it seems that he murdered many people and gave the cops a heck of a job finding him. 10 years actually, they spent 10 years finding him. Then, 5 years later, he just poofs, gone. Cell wasn't damaged at all.” My eyes remained on the laptop as I talked. Amy groaned. “So we have a killer genius on the loose that the government didn't warn us about, great. Lee, how old is he? Are they trying to find him?” She stared intently at me. “Well, he's about 30. The cops aren't trying to find him, surprisingly. Apparently they want to wait for him to kill again before they waste another 10 years of their life.” I grumbled a bit after my statement.   
I opened my mouth to speak again when Nicole cut me off. “Umm, Leyna? How do you know all of this? Last time I checked, teenage girls can't hack into the government.” I chuckled, smiling deviously. “Well, what do you think I do in my spare time?” My smile was maniatic. Cal looked at me closely, before responding. “Read books, explore the internet and study?” I glared at Cal. “I have a life you know.” Nicole smirked, seeing an opportunity to toy with me. “Well, apparently it consists of hanging out with friends, reading, studying and, our favorite, hacking.” I Nicole shrunk down slightly under the weight of my glare.  
Cal shook her head. “Back to the topic, how did he kill his victims?” Cal said, trying to get us back in track. I stared intently at my laptop, typing furiously. “That's what I'm trying to reach right now.” My volume wavered a bit. Amy looked at me surprised. “Trying?” “This section is way more protected, more barriers holding me back.” I spoke quickly, the speed of my fingers getting faster and faster. Cal looked surprised “Well, it must be important if it's that hard to get into.” Nicole smiled grimly. “Or it's incredibly terrifying, insane or all 3. Well, I'm in!” Everyone one laughed at Nicole's joke, though a pitiful attempt at humor in a time like this.   
“So… what did you find?” Cal asked me after the forced laughter died down. She waited for a second, expecting me to respond. “Leyna?” I ignored her, quickly taking copious amounts of information. My fingers moved at lightening speed, not even consciously realizing it. “I found a whole bunch of psychopath, that's what.” I mumbled, in the same I’m-not-really-listening time. They continued to stare at me expectantly. “Meaning?” Amy prompted. I stayed silent for minutes, but it only felt like seconds for me. I slumped in my seat, finally resting.  
I turned to meeting friends gaze, jumping into conversation before they could speak. “He always uses acquaintances, well- more like minions. He’ll offer them something that they want very badly, very badly, in return for working for him. It can be anything they want too. If they want someone dead, they work for him till he's satisfied than he gets them what they want. That's the only thing they found in relation to the victims though, he used different tactics, different women. He's a mass murderer, a serial killer. Part of what I don't understand though, is why Tyler's still with him. Usually, he uses them for like 9 months then slowly starts breaking off all connections with them. From that I can tell, him and Tyler are still buddy-buddy, even closer than that maybe, which is very strange.” Everyone stared at my wide eyes for a while, wondering what to say to that. “You don't actually think he's using Tyler do you? I mean, though she may be slightly crazy, she's not that bad!” Amy's voice was panicked, refusing to accept that Tyler may be losing it. Nicole nodded with Amy, choosing Amy's side over mine.   
“I'm sorry Amy, Nicole. I can read people, you know that, and I haven't been wrong in years. Plus, the signs were written all over her.” I looked at them in something that was close to sympathy. “So there's nothing that related his victims, nothing at all?” Cal asked, looking around as though someone might be in this room right now. I shook my head, she looked down sullenly. Amy looked up, trying to forget about the Tyler thing. “So, Burns, he isn't just a killer, he's a psychopathic controller. He makes people- brainwashes them, into killing for him. He's playing with innocent people like it's a game- a game! How sick is that.” I felt a wicked smile creep into my face. “So, he wants to play a game, well I'll join- Except on the opposing side.”  
I felt my friends stares burn into my body, and my wicked smile grew. “This'll be fun, I'm not getting bored for the next couple months.” Nicole cleared her throat. “Just, a little random question. How did we go from talking about Amy's totally-hot-and-doesn’t-have-a-crush-on-him guy, to a crazy creepy psychopath?” Nicole voice was meek, something that I very rarely heard. “I really don't know.” Amy said. I turned my gaze back to my computer, turning it off and packing it up, knowing what was coming next. Cal cleared her throat. “Well, I’m officially scared- and tired. Also, oddly hungry. Anyone up for some fast food?”


	8. Chapter 8

Leyna POV

 

  
I walked around 5 meters behind the rest of my friends after we finished dinner and started heading toward the city, my thoughts racing. The thought of Tyler still lingered on my mind, but what was mostly taking up my thoughts was the game I signed myself up for. Though the opponent didn't know that he now had an actual game on his hands. I could still hear my friends conversation though, even if I was barely paying attention and a while behind them. “Do…. Tyler….. game…. Leyna.” I know my friends enough to find what they're talking about. They're concerned about Tyler and me, and the newly arisen game.   
  
I let my head turn from side to side as we walked into the city, observing the community, trying to distract myself from the thoughts that threatened to consume me. People busied themselves racing around and speaking with friends or loved ones. The snow landing atop hats of friends and couples hanging out in their leisure, and cases and suits of those business men that rushed from place to place, trying not to be late to their next meeting of the evening. Tall buildings lined the wide sidewalk, and poor men sat in their small huts. As we neared the park that laid in the middle of the city, you could see the multitude of beautiful white Christmas lights that hung from the trees. Large fake snowflakes lines the trees, bringing out the Christmas spirit.   
  
One couple stood underneath a large tree laughing in each other's arms. A family with 2 children, a mother and a father stood in the middle of the park, laughing and playing around in the snow. Pure happiness was laid upon this area like a blanket, and part of me said that I didn't belong here. But the greater part of me thankfully overruled it. I continued walking through the large park, admiring its beauty. The Christmas decorations make the city that surrounded it look so much better, do much more beautiful. Seeing all of the happy family's, friends, and happy young couples here was so beautiful, and I decided that for one- just one- beautiful night, I would let myself be truly happy.   
  
My friends veered off to the side, heading towards the very middle of the park where a fountain lay, frozen in the most beautiful shape possible. I continued on in the same direction as before though, and soon I heard my name being called by what sounded to be a young girl. The voice was so pure and young, so innocent but so wise. It was very faint, but oh-so present at the same time. It held a hue that felt dangerous and safe that the same time. I felt myself walk toward it, unable to do any otherwise. The voice continued to call, only no one else payed it any attention, I knew it was real though. I walked through many trees and followed a path through a group of wonderfully lit evergreen trees, before I finally came to a halt in a clearing inside the evergreen trees.  
  
A little girl sat on a snow covered bench in the middle of the clearing, a pleasant smile graced her young face. She looked like she was around 6 years old, but the look in her big blue eyes said differently. The story that her eyes told was thousands of years old. Her long hair was so blonde it looked white and seemed to have never been cut, and her skin was almost as pale as her hair. She wore a sweater dress so white, it seemed purer than the snow itself, the shine of the dress only added to it as well. The lights of the trees made her already beautiful features glow gorgeously. “Hello Leyna White.” The little girl's voice sounded just as beautiful and safe as I'd heard it earlier. The aura that she gave off made me want to bow to her. I almost did for a second, but I straightened up a bit and asked. “Hello, who are you?” My voice was clear, but not rude. She giggled, a sound of pure happiness and joy, so sure and innocent.  
  
She gestured for me to come closer, and I did so unconsciously. Once I was close enough for her small, delicate hands to reach, she stood up on her toes and placed her hand on the side of my face. I let out a small gasp of surprise, but it wasn't from her contact, it was from what happened. Suddenly I wasn't looking at the clearing, I was falling backwards in time. I watched as my life flew in front of my eyes, though it was as though someone else had watched it. Then, I fell even farther back, and watched the little girl and how she was created. I watched as a pearl was formed, just the size of a diamond that fits in a ring, and I watched as she appeared behind it. I saw how magic filled the air. My head pounded, nothing making sense, nothing processing in my brain.

  
Suddenly, with a huge head rush, I was staring right back at the field where I started. The little girl removed her hand from my face and smiled that brilliant smile up at me, sinking back to her flat feet. I continued to stare ahead at the trees in front of me. “That was my life. That was a piece of the big 6, part of the world of magic. You were chosen when you were young to help us protect this land. We were expected to wait till you were old enough to officially bear the world upon your shoulders, but unfortunately danger had arisen and I now call to you for help.” Her voice remained steady, but hopelessness and pleading lay heavy beneath it. My body trembled, as if I already felt that weight.   
  
“What would this mean for me?” I asked, my eyes remaining on the trees at the back of the clearing, looking right over the little girl's head. She smiled, seeing how she was winning me over. “This would give you a part of my magic, we would share my power. The pearl you saw in the vision has been fused into a necklace that my partner bears, signifying to all other holders that you carry my power. You would protect those in danger from the threats of the world, with the companionship of me and some of the other holders of the big 6s magic. You would no longer age, and would be immortal. You would be immune to non-life threatening injuries and those that would be life threatening would no longer be.” The girl's voice seemed to young to be saying these things, and far to wise to look this young.   
  
My curiosity was peaked, and I was very close to saying yes. I still had questions though. “What's your name, and why must you take form of a child?” I asked the first questions that came to mind. She smiled, “My name is Caterina, which means Pure. I can change form, I just favor this form, very pure looking.” She smiled, her voice still very floaty. “If I do accept, how will this process play out?” I asked, never one to just throw myself into something. “You will be given the necklace. Do not use haste though, for once the clasp closes around your neck, it is impossible to remove. Then you will slowly gain more of my power which consists of knowledge, purity, and nature. After years of having the power, you will slowly gain ability to change your form as well.” She responded, her sweet voice cloaked in wisdom. I nodded.   
  
“Will you still be with me- where will you be in this?” I asked the question that would officially confirm my answer. “Yes. I would always be with you. Though at times I may be residing in the necklace, or hidden in a pocket or someplace on your body. You needn't worry, I will always be able to give you advice or information that you are unable to reach.” She said, before a beautiful necklace with the very same pearl from the past appeared in her hand. At the end of the thin silver chain rested a small metal dome that the pearl rested underneath. It was very simple, and unnoticeable to the eye of someone who wasn't looking for it. “Do you accept this position, Leyna White?” Catherina’s voice floated in my head. I tensed for a second, trying find out what path to take. I sucked a large breath in through my nose, teeth clenched together.  
  
“Yes.” I breathed out as I said it. I lowered my gaze down to Caterina, reaching my hand out to take the necklace. To my surprise, she shook her head and gestured for me to get on my knees. “This is a way of protection for us, we must choose to share our power and give it out, not have it forced from our hand.” Her sweet voice floated around my head. Only then did I realize that I was being more open with her than I was with any other person in my life, and surprisingly I was ok with that. I knelt, and I felt her small hands reach around my neck. The chill of the pearl landed in the middle of the area between my breasts. I slowly felt her clasp the necklace, before all the metal hit my neck.  
  
I felt something foreign surge through me, before I felt like someone built a door and a bridge into my head. I wanted to ask about it, but I was unable to, just as I was unable to do anything but process the new power inside me. “It's the connection built between me and you.” Caterinas voice floated through the fog of power, answering my question. I looked up at her confusingly, knowing that I didn't ask it out loud. “When we share power, we have a link. I can see into your mind and when you learn to control the power, you'll be able to see into mine.” She smiled, before resting her hand on my cheek once again. The fog the fog I felt in my mind slowly dissipated and soon I felt almost completely back to normal.   
  
You'll be able to communicate with me like this as well, even when your powers are undeveloped.

  
I heard her sweet voice in my head, making me jump in surprise. I looked at her in confusion.

  
Try it.

  
I scrunched my brow in concentration.

  
L-like t-t-this?

  
Yes! Just like that, try it without the stuttering though. It will become a lot easier as it goes.

  
I looked at Caterina doubtfully, to which she smile and gestured for me to try again.

  
I-is this better?

  
I looked at her frustratedly, annoyed that I stuttered.

  
That was very good! The stuttering is almost gone, your learning much quicklier than I expected.

  
I looked up at the girl, who was intact much older than me with a proud pride nobody's ever seen from me before.

  
Really?

  
My eyes lit up light a 3 year old who just got a puppy, showing a very childlike side of me that I didn't even know existed anymore. That side of me disappeared the day my mother was murdered.

  
I saw Caterina tense, then a small burst of blue light emerged from the pearl and Caterina was no more. I felt confusion rush through me for a moment. When I heard the footsteps behind me though, the confusion vanished, replaced by scrambling to obtain my posture and finding a cover story.

  
You were looking for a quiet place to think, so you came here, and not expecting it to be so beautiful you lost track of time.

  
I heard Caterina speak quickly in my head, giving me a fool-proof cover. I heard their footsteps stop behind me, admiring the beauty. “Pretty, isn't it?” I commented, telling them that I knew they were here. I did a quick check of the time, and almost did a double take. I had certainly lost track of time. “Hey Lee, we came to tell you that we're leaving. We aren't quite sure if you want to though.” Amy said, silently asking if I wish to come with. Before I could respond, Nicole blurted “What are you doing here anyways?” I took a deep breath and looked around, admiring the scenery once again. “I was looking for a quiet place to think, after everything that's happened. I came across this place and I didn't think it would be so beautiful, I guess I lost track of time.” I stared at them, silently daring them to challenge me. My normal personality back, shields right were they originally were.

  
Nice job, I haven't ever seen someone convince their friends that easily.

  
I laughed in my head.

  
I've had lots of practice.

  
I could almost see her nodding in my head. I focused back on my friends, “Yea. I'll walk back with you guys.” They smiled and nodded. Before we all turned and started walking back towards our houses. I almost missed the new bracelet on Cals wrist, I don't think the others noticed at all.

 


	9. Chapter 9

Cal’s POV

 

  
After I met Edana, one of the big 6 apparently, my life took a drastic change. When I met Erma she took the form of a old lady, only to change as soon as I said yes back into a sparrow. I don't understand why she choose me, considering her name means little fiery one. She seems so rough on the edges, and I'm, well, not. She said something along the lines of that we had to balance each other out, I took that for a reasonable answer but I still didn't fully believe her. The speaking to each other with the mind talk thing was very strange to me, and it still weirds me out a bit. But considering everything that's happened recently, I'm surprised that it still weirds me out.

  
I very vividly remember the first time I met her. It was right after Leyna went her own way, and suddenly I heard a calling of my name. The voice that called was very old and brittle, but it contained strength beyond comparison. Though very quiet, it was so powerful; a voice so kind, but so full of fire. I told my friends I would join them in a moment, then I set off in search of the voice. I may be no Leyna, but I know when I'm the only one who can hear something. I walked just enough so I was within eyesight of my friends before I reached the old woman who was the source of the voice. Let's just say it didn't take her very long to convince me. She told me that her magic consisted of air or wind, and the power to predict possible futures. The bracelet that she gave me it was so pretty, so so very pretty. The small ruby that was embedded in the simple silver chain was where Edana lay rest most often. My everyday routine, was probably what changed the most though.

  
I woke to the sun peaking through the curtains that hung against my window. The small window took up ¾ of the right wall in my very small room. My parents weren't the wealthiest people in the world, but they held up the small house we owned well enough. My golden bed cover sparkled in the sunlight, creating a contrast with the white that lay throughout the rest of the room. Suddenly the voice of a girl, just a few years older than I, filled my head

  
Guten Morgen!

  
I jumped in surprise, almost forgetting the events of last night. Then I frowned thinking of what she said.

  
What?

  
Chirping filled the room, along with a laughing in my head.

  
It's good morning in German silly! You slept for quite some time, I was getting bored.

  
I looked at the sparrow sitting by the windowsill, very confused.

  
Don't you sleep; or were you awake that whole time?

  
The sparrow chirped multiple times, though nothing filled my head. My confusion increased, and soon the sparrow disappeared with a red flash of light and in its place sat a simple black cat. I stared at Edana, waiting for her to answer my question. She never spoke a word though.

  
Hello? Edana?

  
The only response I got was a ‘yes Calypso?’ I stared at the black cat that she had taken form as, silently willing her to respond. The black cat just stared back mockingly. “Edana…” I groaned, getting annoyed with her little game.

  
Oh, you're not any fun. Yes, to answer your question. I do sleep, just not as long as you people do. Your sleep will slowly decrease, and you'll be able to go longer without sleep as your abilities develop.

  
I rolled my eyes, before dragging myself from my bed. When the chilly, soft, carpet met my warm feet, I hissed. Edana meowed in a way that sounded like she was laughing at me. I grumbled some incoherent words, and started my daily routine.

  
What, in the name of 6, are you doing?

  
I glanced at what I expected to be a black cat, except the sparrow was back. “Daily Routine.” I said offhandedly, before continuing my work. Edana made a noise of recognition in my head and continued to watch me.

  
What is that contraption?

  
I looked at her in surprised, than back to the golden hairbrush I was using to brush my mane of brown hair. “You mean a hairbrush?” I asked incredulously, not understanding how a million year old creature didn't know what a hairbrush was. Edana made a chirp of confirmation as it continued staring at the hairbrush. “How, Edana, in your million years of experience, do you not know what a hairbrush is?” I was dumbfounded, only just beginning to get to know who was now my partner for eternity.

  
So that… thing… is called a hairbrush. I do not know many modern things, because I was stuck in that bracelet you know wear in your wrist for eons, up until you breathed your very first breath of air.

  
“That must have gotten very lonely.” I commented, all by completely forgetting about routine. I couldn't imagine being stuck in a place and not being able to speak with anybody.

  
Only a little, I was able to speak with the other 5 as long as they were in their holders.

  
I nodded, slowly getting a picture of what her life must have been like. “Didn't you get sick of each other? I would.” I commented.

  
Actually we got along fairly well, well that was until Damion left. Then everyone divided, the only one who didn't choose sides was Caterina. In my opinion, everyone should have followed her example. She's recognized for her wisdom after all.

  
I nodded, hearing her but my mind was still stuck on this Damion person. “ Whose Damion?” Edana was quiet for a long time, and it wasn't a game this time. A sober mood fell upon us.

  
Damion, he was wonderful. He carried water and speed. But his partner, he came about before ours. The only other one whose partner came about before us was Duff, the dark. Except he wasn't one to mess with. Damion had no intentions to leave but when it was his time, he had too. The only one who wasn't very close with him was Caterina. Everyone missed him and took different ways of coping with it. That's what ended up dividing us.

  
Silence fell like a blanket upon us. I lowered my head, sorrowful for Edana. “I'm so sorry, he seemed like he was great.” I said, returning back to my overly compassionate nature. Another red flash appeared, and soon the sparrow was replaced with a girl a few years older than I. Her hair was black as the night, and eyes a strange purple color. Her body was slim, almost skinny and her height just a few centimeters taller than mine. She was gorgeous, and built like a warrior. Her eyes filled with pearl like tears, as she mourned her lost friend. “Oh, we was. He was absolutely wonderful.” She smiled wistfully, looking to be submerged in memories. Her voice was slightly deep, and dangerous. But Cal couldn't have felt safer. “He always loved Pure, most likely because the holders were meant to be together. She always brushed him off though, always.” Edana’s voice trailed off, unable to get herself out of dreamland.

  
A loud ringing brought both out of our trance. I jumped up and stumbled over to my iPhone. Nobody ever called me on Sundays, so it must have been important. “Cal!” Was the first thing I heard when I picked up my phone. I held the phone a solid 3’’ away from my face and I said “take it down 5 notches Nicole.” Edana snorted, struggling to cover her laugh. “Sorry.” She said half heartedly before rushing on. “We have a huge emergency! You have to get over here immediately!” I opened my mouth to ask where ‘here’ was. “Edmans bar! Now! Be there in 10!” Then she was gone.

  
I stood there dumbfounded for around a minute before Edana punched my arm. “Come on Cal, we gotta figure out what the emergency is!” Edana smiled mockingly. I snickered, before throwing on a jacket, gloves and boots. Suddenly I yelped, completely submerged in the boot. I looked up, and saw Edana looming above me, tears of laughter dripping from her eyes. I opened my mouth to protest to her laughing, but the only thing that came out was a squeak. I froze, before looking at myself. I was furry and had stripes. Pure panic crashed into me, and soon I was sure I was about to have a panic attack. Edana saw my panic and almost as quickly as it started I was back to my usually form. I stared at her, panic still hovering in my eyes. Edana’s humor eyes were soon replaced with sympathy. “You know how I change form?” I nodded, though dwindling, the panic was still present. “You can do that too, except this time it was unexpected. Mostly you'll be able to control it.” She explained. I nodded, starting to understand it.

  
I stood frozen for a second, before I remembered Nicole's freak out. I was almost about to put on my boots, before I changed my mind. Instead I grabbed my favorite pair of purple converse. Then I raced out the door.

  
Let's just say that was the saddest morning routine I've ever had. Of course, it wasn't always this sad. But my routine wasn't ever the same day to day. It disturbed my orderly fashion, replacing it with some spontaneity. It wasn't horrible, but it offset my day, leaving me to a new day everyday, not just repeating the same day over and over.


	10. Chapter 10

Leyna's POV

  
After Caterina joined me, I've been focusing on channeling and controlling my new found power. I got to know Caterina a lot better, soon realizing that we were very good partners. Soon, I could access a great deal of knowledge in a matter of seconds, and work with vines. The morning that Nicole called me, I managed to almost perfect the art of summoning and controlling the vines.

  
“Morning Rina.” I called into the practically vacant house, except for me and one of the big 6. “Hope you slept well?” I had quickly learned that she didn't need as much sleep as me, instead spent her time reading the few books she hadn't yet read. My need to sleep started decreasing as well, till I only needed about 5 hours. I quickly changed and got ready for the day, dressing in my favorite black leather jacket, light colored ripped skinny jeans, a blue tank top with a V-neck, and a pair of combat boots with a small 2 inch heel. Then, I straightened my hair.

  
As soon as I finished getting ready, I stalked down the empty spacious hallway, and into the large kitchen. The kitchen would have been empty, if not for the little girl sitting in it. She wore black leggings, a pretty white dress that went to just above her knees, and a matching leather jacket. When I saw the leather jacket I chuckled. “That the same jacket as me?” I commented, teasing lightly. She grinned that little girl grin up and me, and replied. “Almost. I thought we could match.” She added, sounding like a little sister wanting to be just like her big sister. I chuckled, and just as I was about to summon a few vines and start cooking breakfast, my phone rang.

  
I already knew who it was, but that didn't stop me from wondering why. Nicole doesn't call me very often, oddly enough, considering she calls everyone else almost everyday. It's not like she's scared of me, I'm pretty sure that it's because we aren't as close as we used to be. Pushing my thoughts off to the side, I picked up my phone and focused on what Nicole was saying. She was rushing and slurring her words, and if I wasn't connected to Caterina I wouldn't have had a clue what she was saying. I didn't see the emergency in her situation, till I heard something that caught my mind. “I'll be over in 10.” I cut Nicole's panic off and rushed around grabbing everything I need. Only when I was out the door in my car, did I spare a second to explain everything to Caterina.

  
Nicole called and said that she had an emergency. It didn't sound like an emergency at first, just stupidity. She somehow got herself trapped in a bar full of creeps and weirdos. Except, she said that she saw someone playing with there water in the corner. Not the normal playing though, she said he was like a magician, that he was making it float and what not.

  
Caterinas face paled at this, before she changed into a weird leaf like creature and crawled into my jacket pocket. I took a millisecond to study the creature that she had taken form as. It looked to be made of green twigs and was only around 2 inches tall. It's structure was like a human being, but it was no hair.

  
Well, this is about to get interesting.

  
Her child like voice floated around my head. The rest of the car ride was spent in silence, until we finally pulled into the parking lot of Edmans Bar. The place was old and rickety, it looked like it would collapse at any moment. The red sign that read Edmans Bar was flickering, about to burn out. I saw Cal's damaged car and I knew that she was already here. I glanced around and did not see Nicole's car and instead saw Amy's. “Idjits.” I mumbled to myself. I practically threw the car door opened before stalking inside the bar, an aura of power surrounding me.

  
The first thing I noticed when I walked inside was the reek of alcohol. I could feel Caterina cough in my jacket pocket and gently patted it. She curled deeper in a ball. People clustered around every surface and the dance floor was very full. Despite it being morning, it was packed. My eyes darted around, looking for Nicole and Amy. I found them huddled in the back corner, trying to avoid confrontation with anybody else. I shook my head and rolled my eyes at their stupidity.

  
I continued to walk toward them, the second their eyes met mine, they let out a sigh of relief. “Leyna!” Amy cried, she looked ready to leap up and give me a hug. Nicole had the same reaction. “What have you to idiots gotten yourselves into now?” They both began stumbling to explain how they were called and told to come here for money. Then came Amy sheepishly telling me how it was a fraud and now they couldn't get out without being noticed and bothered. Cal showed up in the middle of their explanation and even she seemed annoyed with them. “Where's the boy?” I asked, trying to see if Caterina and I’s suspicions were correct. Nicole pointed over to the corner on the other side of the room. I nodded, before walking over there.

  
The boy was around my age, probably a few years older. He wore black, and seemed very out of place. His eyes were the most startling grey you'd ever see, and had black hair, just as Nicole had said, he was moving his water all around. I heard Caterina take a sharp intake of breath

  
It's- it's, Ash.

  
Part of me was confused as to how she knew that, but I knew that the fact that she did was important. I slid into the seat across from him. His trance didn't break, and I almost thought he didn't know I was here. But he did. His presence made me uneasy, and it made Caterina uneasy as well. “Ash, is it?” I asked him Coolly.

  
His concentration didn't waver. “Correct, that is unless my name has changed. Which makes no sense, considering how I like my name.” His eyes flicked up to mine. When he saw who it was, his plump lips curled into a smirk. His grey eyes twinkled. “Ah, Leyna. To what do I owe this pleasure.” His deep voice dragged out the words. My hazel ones widened, surprised. Ash smirked. “Yes, I know all about you. Such a pretty face.” The water formed a hand and reached out toward my face.

  
Lies! He's Lying Lee.

  
I batted the water hand away from my face, where it left a wet trail. “Liar!” I hissed, getting more defensive by the minute. I felt Caterina shift in my pocket.

  
Ask for Damion!

  
I bit my lip to hold in a gasp, Damion. Caterina had told me about him. “Bring him out.” I demanded, not giving a crap about what Ash thinks about me. I saw him tense, obviously I'd hit a nerve.

  
“Who?” He asked, trying to play dumb. I sent him a hard glare. “Don't play games with me, Ash. I told you to bring Damion out.” I growled. My eyes were deadly. I saw him struggling not to cower. He covered it up fairly well though. “Fine, but only if you'll bring out Caterina!” He shot back. I struggled to conceal my reaction.

  
I'll come out. Say yes.

  
“Fine.” My voice was clipped, obviously not happy with Caterinas decision. He nodded, and soon after 2 bright flashes of light, Caterina and a boy appeared. The boy had light brown hair that was slicker straight back. His jawline was sharp, and his eyes candy apple green. He looked around 5 years older than Caterina. Damon's eyes lit up at the sight of the young blonde, he obviously missed her.

  
“Hello Ash, Damion.” Caterina’s sweet, wise voice broke the silence. “Good evening, my dear Caterina.” Damion smiled. Then he turned to us, an annoyed expression written clear on his face. “Now, will you two please be civil? Honestly, don't you know that if me and Caterina are partners you are too.” Ash looked down, but I narrowed my eyes at Damion.

  
“Who are you to tell me what to do. I haven't ever met you, just heard stories.” My voice was slightly less hostile, though still defensive. I felt Caterinas hand touch my thigh, trying to calm me. I felt waves of calm flood into my head, obviously Caterinas doing. It didn't make the hostility go away though. Ash smirked at me, silently teasing me. I glared at him. “I suppose we could try to get along.” He drawled. I detected an accent in his voice, but I wasn't sure which one. “Good.” Damion said sharply. “Now, you two run along. Me and Caterina have some, Catching up to do.” He smirked before another flash appeared and soon the 2 of the 6 were gone, stuffed into my necklace.

  
Have fun!

  
Caterinas voice rang through my head, and was soon joined by a deeper one.

  
And don't bite each other's heads off!

  
I tensed. Before asking him why he was in my head. I could hear the smirk in his voice as he said something along the lines of because he was in the necklace. I just nodded not responding.

  
“So, your hearing Damion in you head than, I assume.” Ash said in his unknown accent. I nodded stiffly, before shaking myself out of my dumbfounded trance. Ash laughed, but strangely this time it wasn't mocking. “Well, we’ll be spending a lot of time together in the near future.” He smiled a wide smile, showing off his perfect white teeth. If I was like a normal girl, he would have just bent me to his every whim. I rolled my eyes, before adding “Better start getting used to each other than.” My voice wouldn't be audible to any other ordinary human, but Ash heard it. Ash hears everything.

  
His eyes lit up brightly, an idea suddenly striking him. His gorgeous- wait, where did that come from?- face scrunched in concentration.

  
So it does work! I came up with an improvement before Leyna White!

  
I gasped, surprised by the new voice in my head. My head snapped to Ash to see him smirking confidently. It was quite the change from the original hostility between us. Somehow we went from I’m-going-to-kill-you, to wow-I-suppose-we-should-develop-a-solid-friendship. Really, it's was quite confusing, even for me.

  
“Alright, so….” I said, for the first time in my life being at a loss of words. “So….” he trailed off. We sat in silence for a solid 5 minutes before I got an idea. I pulled a small piece of paper from my pocket and scribbled something onto it, before passing it to Ash. His eyes scanned the paper, then he looked up at me, smirking.

  
“Your number, huh?” His eyes suggested many things, which caused me to groan in annoyance. Thought I wouldn’t ever admit, it arose a faint blush. “Yes. We need to get to know each other. Obviously we don't have enough time right now, considering i have friends that tagged along with me.” I pressed on, trying to hint that I had to leave soon. His smirk lessened ½ a millimeter, but he covered it up well. “Friends, huh? I didn't think you had time for friends.” He said, trying to press as many buttons as possible. I gritted my teeth, determined not to give him the response he wanted.

  
“Yes, friends. Now, I must be going.” I stated, standing up and preparing to leave. “Call me.” I winked, playing along with his unannounced game. I watched him just long enough to see the break in his composure. When I walked away, I made sure to let him see my laughter.

  
He did end up calling me, thankfully. I never thought I'd ever have anybody who was closer to me than Amy, Nicole, and Cal were; but, for the first time in a while, I was wrong. As I got to know Ash, I started to learn how he was a playboy, and a class clown. But, I also learned how kind he was, and caring. I almost didn't notice when I started, no matter how slowly, to fall for him.

 


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

 

  
Leyna's POV

  
It has been a while since that conversation with Ash, and thankfully my friends didn't notice any of the flashes of light or magic in that dark corner. Me and Caterina got a lot closer, as well as me and Damion. Ash became one of my closest friends, by-passing Amy and Nicole. We hadn't heard from Tyler or Burns for a while. I still haven't told Ash about that problem, I've been putting it off. I also tried to find more on Burns. I'm afraid to say I was unsuccessful. Well, for a while that is. I found a very small lead to magic, that's when I knew that I had to speak with Ash. Of course, that didn't go quite as planned.

  
Hey, Ash.

  
I linked Ash through the bond that had formed from the magic, trying to get his attention. I was very nervous about telling Ash, because I know that he's very protective of his friends. That's quite the story for sure. We went to that same bar that I met him at, and some red neck came up to me to try and flirt. I could have easily taken care of it, but Ash got to it first. Let's just say it got kinda bloody, and that man never bugged us- me, again. I also found out that the bond could transfer emotions, which wasn't always bad. But right now, I was finding it slightly challenging to keep the nerves from passing over.

  
Leyna, just couldn't keep away, could you?

  
He teased, holding on to the flirtatious personality. It had become our thing, and my friends thought we were dating at some points in time, which I always denied. His happiness decreased a bit when he noticed how I hadn't said anything to deny it, like I always did.

  
You ok? You're not like dying right?

  
He said worriedly, though adding in a joke at the end, considering it's practically impossibly to kill one of the holders. His concern only grew when I didn't respond, he knew I was listening. I shook my head, trying to force the nerves from my head, this was my best friend, why was I nervous.

  
I've got something to ask you about-

  
Ley, if you're worried about something, don't be.

  
Though he cut me off, I still laughed a bit. He thinks this is something mental related. I knew that he would ditch me, but I couldn't predict exactly how he was going to react.

  
Ha, I'm not necessarily worried. I'm just wondering if you have any information on someone I'm having a conflict with.

  
I spoke quickly, making sure I wasn't interrupted again. His concerned mood diminish a bit, though his protective one increased.

  
Conflict? Ok, I'll try and give you some information. I do have quite the knack for remembering people.

  
I could practically hear the wink in the end of his statement. I almost laughed, Ash never changed, always the flirtatious man.

  
It's a man whose last name is Burns, and he alsokindaescapedfromthemosthighlyguardedprisonever

  
The last part was very very rushed, considering I didn't want him to hear it. I took a deep breath and tried to mentally prepare myself for his reaction. It didn't work.

  
Within a matter of 10 seconds, I heard a loud exclamation of what! From the link, and soon I saw a very protective and angry Ash standing in front of me. His hair was disheveled and his blue tee-shirt was rumpled, his grey eyes churning like a terrifying hurricane. I jumped, and stumbled backwards. I would have fallen if it wasn't for Ash's rough hands grabbing my shoulders to keep my upright. For the first time since I have gotten these powers, did I feel fear. It wasn't for my life, it was for whoever would get the brunt of it. Ash stared me down, and he looked to be debating whether to yell at me or not, though that wouldn't get him anywhere except in trouble with me.

  
“What did you do?” Where the first words to come out of his mouth. I would have preferred him to be mad, after all that's what I'm used to when my father's home, but he was so calm, so cool. I didn't know what to do. So, I stared him down, resorting to my tough act that Ash had spent a while trying to break down. I almost wanted Caterina and Damion to come out of the necklace and Ash's tattoo. But they didn't, this was between me and Ash, and honestly, for the first time, Ash would probably win. I put a lot of my effort into not showing any fear, not wanted to let the walls I've built crumble.

  
“I don't know what you could possibly mean.” I replied smoothly, surprising myself. Of course, the small victory was ruled out by the look Ash gave me. “So… I take it you know Burns.” I trailed off, my voice weak, thanks to my self-confidence. Normally, when I showed I was feeling even slightly weak, he would automatically lower his anger, but I haven't ever seen him this angry before so I wasn't surprised it didn't even make him budge.

  
“How- exactly- did you manage to get yourself into a conflict with Burns!” His teeth were gritted and I could tell he was trying to hold himself together. I managed a weak chuckle, before saying “Well, it's a funny story…” before explaining what happened. I told him how Tyler ran off, and joined him. Then I told him how they were probably gonna target Cal, and how he broke out and nobody ever heard of it. Lastly I told him of what I found out about him, and I ended very quietly with how I decided to play his game as the opponent.

  
Ash managed to understand why I got into a conflict, but when I told him that I accepted his game, his anger spiked again. “Why, in any world, would you accept his game?” He held onto his scary calm attitude and I knew I was screwed. The water cup started to go crazy and I focused on using my vines to calm that down. “Well, it sounds like it will keep me from getting bored.” I knew how he wasn't going to like that at all, but I stand by my decision. I don't feel many things sometimes, and the fact that this situation is an emotional rollercoaster made it fun.

  
My head jerked up to see the water glass laying in pieces by the wall. “Because it would keep you from getting bored! Have you lost your mind? I thought you were supposed to be crazy smart! What is wrong with you!” He yelled, and strangely I was almost relieved. But that relief was short-lived. His words sunk in at the same time as he realized what he said. No matter how many times I tried to deny it, my self confidence wasn't actually as high as it seems, and my intelligence was a weak point. I took a step away from Ash, before making an effort to compose myself.

  
“There's nothing wrong with me, I don't regret choosing to participate in this game. Do you have any information on Burns Ash, or are you going to keep yelling at me.” My voice was emotionless, as it was the only way to hold myself together. Ash was still very angry and I knew that, but he soon began seeing how weak I was and how rashly he acted. Unfortunately, every creature on this planet is ridden with a horrible thing called pride. “Burns is the keeper of one of the big 6 that went evil, Duff. His first name is Jace and if he's working with your friend, I do hope she manages to reach him and change him even a little bit.” Ash said, his voice tense. I nodded processing this new information. I knew I'd be able to find much more about this online now that I had this new info.

  
“Thank you Ash.” I said, before turning away. I was about to start walking when his hand grabbed my arm, holding me in this place. I could have easily gotten out of his grip if I needed, and I almost decided to. Instead I turned and asked him if he needed anything from me. The hurricane his eyes used to possess diminished to a simple rain. “Leyna, you know I never meant to hurt you.” He said, doing his best to apologize. I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. I'd been on edge since he'd made those comments and now I was just barely holding onto the strings of what hold me together.

  
Of course, Ash noticed, because he always notices. He gently grabbed my hand and led to to my grey couch. “Leyna, you do know how incredibly dangerous this is right? I really don't want you to get hurt. Jace is a holder so he knows what can hurt us, and you're my best friend, I can't let anything happen to you.” He spoke softly, the anger completely gone from his features. “Which is why, I'm joining you in your game, to help keep you safe.” My eyes snapped up to his, surprise coating my face. I opened my mouth to respond but nothing came out.

  
Ash pulled me into his chest, and soon I was blinking back tears. My best friend just held me as I struggled and when I felt a tear drop on my head, I knew that I wasn't the only one this affected. Soon the dam broke and all the tears just came flooding out. I hadn't ever had someone to do this for me, since my mom died when I was little and my father wouldn't ever do anything like this. Ash just rocked and let me cry, knowing that I had to trust him a great deal to even see me this way, let alone hold me.

  
Shh, it's ok. I got you.

  
Comforting words floated around my head, until I finally calmed down enough to stop shaking. Tears still slid down my face, after all, I haven't cried in 3 years. Ash never left though he just sat there and rocked me, until I fell asleep, in the arms of my best friend.

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Credit to my friends for helping me write this! Couldn't have done it without you. Beta by Piper
> 
> This is my first story! Please review and help me get better.


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